


My dear sweetheart is just too damn OOO

by walterinsect



Category: THE iDOLM@STER
Genre: F/F, Translation, Yuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-20 23:55:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17632178
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/walterinsect/pseuds/walterinsect
Summary: The Cinderella Project is now back in the room on the 30th floor of the annex building. from the dusty underground office they were exiled to.Rin and Mio started talking about their romantic partners, sharing just how cute they are. The discussion starts to involve more participants at two locations. They are just too damn cute they can't take it anymore!Filled with the 惚気 noroke, and the bragging about partners in the five CPs (slashes?).





	My dear sweetheart is just too damn OOO

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [愛しいあの子が○○すぎてツライ](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/453968) by FIVEs(黄色の5). 



> This is an English translation of a work by FIVEs(黄色の5) posted on pixiv under the original title "愛しいあの子が○○すぎてツライ" in Japanese. Translated with permission from the author.  
> Original work can be found here: https://www.pixiv.net/novel/show.php?id=6743246  
> Issues with the translation should be directed at me. Make sure to give it a like for the JPN original as well!
> 
> Note: the italicised text mark the references to songs in Cinderella Girls discography (that's part of the joke)

It has been a year since the Cinderella Project began. It’s about that time when all of the members grew a year older.

The project has returned from the underground, storage-turned-office that they were exiled to – yet full of memories - to the room on 30th floor of the annex.

The project room consisted of producer’s office, the common space for all the idols, and the shelves which Chihiro managed herself. It feels almost nostalgic to think these were just crammed into one room with partitions in the underground office.

The cellar office had a hand-made touch from everyone, but the scenery from the high-rise annex building was also quite enjoyable, producer thought, as he took a look at the beautiful blue sky with the warmth typical in the spring.

He had to head out for the meeting, so with the handouts in hand, he left his office.

“I have a meeting to attend to, so I’ll be out for a bit. Please call me if you need anything.” As he reached the exit, he took a glace at the commons. Rin and Mio were at the table, discussing something.

“OK.”

“Alright, producer”.

The two responded, briefly stopping the discussion. “Right” He proceeded to leave the room.

Seemed like those two were focused on the discussion…it’s good to talk about things with seriousness like that, but what were they discussing…? He wondered, as he waited for the elevator. With the bell, telling him its arrival, his thought switched from that to the upcoming meeting.

 

* * *

 

 

“Well, let’s get back from the tangent, Mio.”

“Oh yes Shiburin. Now that producer’s gone as well.”

“So once again…”

“Yeah”

The two sat on the couch, rested their arms on their knees and leaned forward. It was like the circle sport teams form before the match, just without the arms on each other’s shoulders.

“Uzuki is…”

“A-chan’s…”

\-----too damn cute!!

Their voice made a beautiful unison.

“sigh…”

“phew…”

The pair leaned back on the couch.

“You know, it was Uzuki’s birthday, right? We held birthday party here, with everyone who could come.”

Rin suddenly started talking about the event. Mio responded, while keeping her relaxed posture.

“Yeah, Shimamu- looked super happy.”

“I know! She was smiling all day and so cute…but I also wanted to keep that smile all to myself…”

“Ah that’s why you stayed away a bit during the party. Like if you got closer, you couldn’t strain yourself.”

“Well, yeah. So, after that, we left together, and I invited her to my house on the way. We share the route anyways, so. Then I gave her my personal gift I prepared, on top of what we gave her in the project’s name. “

“Woo you so sneaky! Giving present in secret, huh. What was the gift by the way?”

“Ring”

“……What!?”

Mio couldn’t keep the relaxed posture anymore, and leaned forward again, and stared at Rin with her eyes wide open, filled with surprise. The cushions squeaked, and Rin got up as well.

“It was our one-year anniversary since we met at that park, right? So, it’s like anniversary and milestone combined.”

“But…a ring?

“Yeah. My plan was to do it on that exact anniversary date, under the cherry blossoms in that park. But the ring took longer to prepare, and the weather was all weird this year, and the cherry blossom bloomed earlier. So, I decided to do it on her birthday instead.”

“Yeah, it was a strange spring indeed. Too cold one day, blazing hot the another……wait wait…a _ring_?”

Mio asked again, with the emphasis on ring, with a surprise on her face still. Rin stared at Mio’s face, not understanding her reaction. After three whole seconds, Rin realized why, and rushed to explain.

“Oh, no it wasn’t like fancy engagement ring with diamond or anything. Just like normal pair ring that you can wear as necklace as well.”

“Ah okay. You gave me a heart attack there…just a normal ring, alright.”

“Yeah. I mean the real thing is for my 18th birthday…”

Mio decided not to hear the last bit.

“By the way, the messed up cherry blossom can’t be helped, but it’s rare to see you take time to indecisive about things like this.”

“What does that supposed to mean?”

“Oh no no don’t take it like that. I mean, you mentioned it took time to prepare the ring, right? Were you choosing between designs or something?”

Rin answered, now realizing what Mio meant.

“Well, I had idea about which one I was getting.”

“Oh okay. Then why..”

“If I couldn’t decide on the design, I would’ve said so, instead of “preparing.”

Rin’s riddling answer puzzled Mio. Rin gave the answer straight away.

“The size. I couldn’t get the right one.”

“…Ah”

No one wants to see their present not fitting on your partner’s finger. Rin was no different.

“In the end, I had to get a fluffy wire thing and wrapped it around her finger, but it took ages to have that opportunity.”

“Well, you gotta be sneaky, I guess”

“Yeah. Like quickly wrap them around when she’s asleep. So, when I had a sleepover at hers, I had to make sure she sleeps tight. So, on the bed I had to go beyond…”

“Stop Shiburin, that’s enough, stay, house!”

Rin was leaning forward with excitement but had to lean back. She had that look of a dog who was told to stay in front of her food.

“Well tangent aside…So I gave her the ring, at my place, when we were just two of us. Sitting on the bed together and opened the box for her.”

“Woo great. I wanna do that in future”.

One day, I will give A-chan…she stopped the train of thought there. It was just too much to even think about.

“Then I said “Happy birthday, Uzuki”, and then she was crying”

“Well, yeah.”

Mio could picture Uzuki holding her hand on her mouth and looking at Rin and the ring with her eyes filled with tears of joy.

“I wanted to put it on her finger, but then she just hugged me while crying. “Thanks, Rin-chan” she said. Thanked me without the usual keigo…”

“…I didn’t want to ask this, but this is all happening on the bed, right? You said you two were sitting on it and all.”

“Yes”

“That means…?”

“……Well, we had fun after that.”

Geez, don’t go all direct like that! Mio exclaimed like a seasoned actor on stage. Rin pretended she didn’t hear her line.

“So, we had fun time. Next morning, Uzuki was up before me, out of ordinary to be honest.”

“Yeah…?”

Mio could list several things she wanted to say but swallowed it and kept it to herself. Such response was her kindness whenever Rin talked about it.

“She was awake, but still in bed. Lying on the back, and wearing the ring I gave her, on her left ring finger, you know. She had her arm extended and adoring it, not realizing I was awake.”

“……”

Uzuki must’ve been the happiest girl on earth, then. Receiving a ring from your significant other on your birthday. It was the dream every girl would dream.

For the first year, they had the excitement of new adventure, fear for uncertain future, and many more. But they were always together. That bond, that feeling has took a shape as the ring they shared. This ring was, for both Uzuki and Rin, not just a normal ring, even more important for the couple than mere engagement or marriage ring.

“Then finally she noticed me, and was like “You should’ve told me if you were awake!”

“I guess she was blushed ‘cos you saw her enjoying the ring”

“Yeah. Then she tucked herself in the blanket and hid her hand. So, I grabbed her hand, and kissed it on he ring. I said “I’ll always be with you, forever, Uzuki”

“…I envy you. It’s so good.”

“It was the happiest time of my life.”

Rin’s face softened. Mio could tell she’s reliving that moment. Soft gaze and the smile. Only Uzuki can make Rin have this look,

“Well, then we had another fun time, and Uzuki scolded me for having too much fun and made her late to come home. Surely, a problem.

“I knew it! Geez you straight-faced-perv!”

“What could I do!? My dear Uzuki’s _bashful hanikami days drove my Anemone a star burst!!_ Cranky Uzuki is just too damn cute! It’s too much!”

“Hey hey hey flower shop girl! Don’t use anemone as some lewd code word like that!”

What would people think if Shibuya Rin, who fills the song score black with directions and notes about the song, makes lewd jokes with her own song like this.

“I’ll find that Anemone Star one day…well my star is already here, but…”

“……Shiburin, we should go to the lyrics writer and thoroughly apologize, you know.”

I’ll go with you, said Mio, as she tapped on Rin’s shoulder.

“How about you, Mio? How’s it going with Aiko?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“What happened after the _Stormy Night and had some Please Please time?_ ”

Rin shrugged her shoulders, taking Mio’s hand off of them. Mio returned to her place and sat down.

“Nothing really…nothing…”

“Haven’t you had your _Step Flip and flop! And burst your Mitsuboshi?_ ”

“Seriously, we should really go and apologize, you hear me?”

Rin had gruntled face. Mio had a disappointment with a sigh.

“You see, Shiburin. For you, it might be normal for you to, you know, to have fun time with Shimamu whenever you please. But lemme just say it’s not.”

“Then what _is_ normal for you, Mio?”

“Huh? Well…like when we both have a day off the next day, and we can be by ourselves at either of our houses. Then……we’ll have some time like that.”

Rin sighed, as she heard Mio’s response. Resting her chin on her arms placed on her crossed legs.

“Even if you meet those conditions, I bet you have times when you don’t do anything.”

“…Yes.”

“Are you stupid?”

“OK, this time I’ll say it myself. Yes I am stupid. I know”

Sensing the usual routine, she took over and said it herself.

“You chicken.”

“Ugh”

But there was no escaping from it. Mio took the inevitable damage.

“……I dunno what “normal” is anymore, Shiburin.”

“It’s Uzuki, I guess.”

“Do not say that in front of her, alright?”

“Of course.”

The two are now entering in philosophical discussion. They both knew it was a labyrinth.

“What good will come out of thinking about normal, Mio?”

“Well, if I can research what normal is, then I can figure out if we are behind or ahead of the average, right?”

“Should I just tell you two are behind, even without the research”

“You’re already telling it, Shiburin.”

For both Rin and Mio, the relationship with their partners have been a new challenge. Everything was new and unknown. They both wanted to make sure their partners feel comfortable, no matter what. It wasn’t like Mio wanted to follow what “normal people” are doing, but to use it as a reference for them to proceed and to look back.

“Well, there’s no answer if we just kept talking by ourselves. We need opinion from a third party.”

“Huh? Who exactly do we—”

\--ask, was her next word, as she reached for her smartphone. There was a knock on the front door of the project room.

Has producer came back? They went on alert.

“’Morning. Is Rin here~?”

“Nao…”

The guest was less harmful than they thought.

“Oh mornin’, Kamiyan”

”Mio…Nao is…”

“Shiburin…yeah. She isn’t exactly the “normal” we are looking for…”

Quite harsh, after brief greetings.

“Hey hey! what’s this about normal and all…”

“Well, you see, Kamiyan—"

 

* * *

 

“Rin-chan is…”

“Mio-chan is…”

\--too cool!! It’s too much!!!

At the resting corner next to the lesson rooms were Uzuki and Aiko, exclaimed in unison, with a bottle of tea in their hand. This section of the building was off-limit to the staff, and not many came here, unless they had lesson appointments. So, this place was basically chatting and resting space for idols.

“Giving me ring on my birthday….Rin-chan is just too cool…I just couldn’t stop grinning for a week.”

“To be honest, I’m envying you…one day, I’d receive one from Mio-chan…well I’m very happy as it is now, but I want something physical and all…hey Uzuki-chan, you are already grinning as we speak.”

Huh? Uzuki touched her cheek. She groaned and massaged her cheek muscle. Aiko looked at her with smile, and also blinded by Uzuki’s radiance.

“I wanna get that too…”

“Huh?”

“Oh, no I…”

Did I say it out loud!? Aiko held her hand on her mouth. But spoken words are spoken. Uzuki told her to go on with her expression. Aiko slowly started talking.

“Well…Mio-chan always stands like she protects me in the crowd or in the train. I really like her coolness like that…But whenever we become conscious of it, we can’t do things in normal ways, you know. I saw her hands flopping about, trying to hold my hand, but not quite. I also like when she is hesitating to get closer to me, you see.”

As she put it into words, she also started grinning and blushing, not conscious of it herself.

“But…I feel like I’m always receiving too much”

She looked up to the ceiling.

“I feel that too. It’s always from Rin-chan and…”

“…?”

“Oh no no, I didn’t mean it like that! Like holding hands and things!”

Uzuki quickly explained, almost like hiding something. Aiko decided not to dig deeper.

“I’m trying to give something back, but it’s also fun to wait for Mio-chan and…”

“With me, it’s like she knows when I’m trying and she gives me much more before I can do anything.”

“With Rin-chan, I can imagine.”

The two nodded to themselves and started groaning.

“I don’t know what to do~”

“I wonder what we can do…”

They wanted to receive from their partners, but also wanted to give something back. But waiting is also so much enjoyable. Whenever they try, their partners give them so much.

Not knowing what to do, or even what they wanted to do, they struggled. That was when another figure approached them.

“Hey there. What are you guys doing?”

“Ah, Karen-chan!”

With the look of I-just-finished-my-lesson, she entered the space with her towel hanging from her neck. Karen greeted the two and bought a sport drink before she sat down. She got the overview of the discussion as she took a sip from the bottle.

“Hmmm…wanting to give, but wanting to receive as well, and you also receive much more…”

“Yes…”

Karen flopped her legs, almost enjoying the conundrum the two were facing. Aiko asked Karen “Don’t you have moments like that, Karen-chan?”

“Who, me? Well—”

 

* * *

 

“OK, now I see it. So this is like “let’s talk about our love” session, is it?”

“You say it directly, Kamiyan…”

Nao said it, with a slight sigh.

“Don’t you have something like that, Kamiyan?”

“Well…”

“Ah, wait, sorry Kamiyan.”

Mio suddenly apologized after realizing something. Rin seemed to understand it as well, with smirk on her face.

“Huh, what?”

Nao asked, with confusion on her face. Rin started explaining.

“You are the one petted, right?”

“W, wait Rin! What does that supposed to mean!?”

It couldn’t be more clear, Rin told Nao. Nao groaned with blush on her face. Rin just stayed cool. Apparently, this is the daily routine for these two.

“Kamiyan isn’t Kamiyan if you aren’t being petted or teased…”

“What did you say!?”

No, I’m not like that! Nao tried to explain, but reality spoke stronger than her denial. Everybody saw Nao being teased by Karen, every day, all day. And nobody saw Nao tease Karen too. Nao taking care of Karen, then being teased by Karen, and Nao’s blushed denial. There was some kind of beauty in that daily routine.

“Hey Nao, you don’t have to keep that Tsundere thing with us, you know.”

“Yeah, New generations and Triad Primus are all friends, are we not?”

“Like I’m always telling you, I am not Tsundere!”

Whenever there is this trio, Mio also became the teasing side.

“Geez guys…”

“Sorry~ we aren’t like dissing you, you know.”

“Well, I know that……”

Mio patted Nao’s shoulder, giving some relief in a joking manner. Nao sighed loudly, and Rin was looking at her with a smile.

“So, Nao, don’t you have anything? Like stories of Karen just being too damn cute”

“You keep asking that but…hmmm…”

Rin asked again, and Nao started thinking, with her cheek resting in her hand. Mio thought to herself “Nao gets onto the topic after all, even when she complains at first”.

“Ah”

After a moment, Nao had a lightbulb on her head.

“Oh, you have something?”

“Well, maybe it’s not exactly “being too damn cute”, I don’t know”.

“You already started it. Just spit it out.”

The pair urged Nao to continue.

“Well, just that Karen is very sweet and modest in the bed…”

“——”

“——”

Hehehe, I said it! Nao said with blushed face, scratching her head a little in embarrassment. Mio and Rin just lost words in surprise. Only reaction they made was to distance themselves few centimeters away from Nao.

Rin and Mio looked at each other. There eyes conveyed the same message. “What on earth is this girl talking about!?”

“…huh?”

Nao realized something wrong with their reactions, while twitching her body in a strange manner. She then realized her mistake and that the pair was totally turned off.

“Wait! No! Wait! That’s not what I meant! I mean when she is sick! She was sick some time ago, and it’s about when I visited her, that’s all! Just that she was showing her vulnerable side and she was cute! That’s it!!

Nao rose from the sofa and tried her best to explain the details. She now realized what she said. Together with shouting, her face reddened as she spoke.

“Geez, that was quite a surprise…don’t do that, Nao.”

“I know. Kamiyan, I thought you started telling _bed SIDE_ _stories that she doesn’t know_ or something.”

“Oh, Mio. that’s pretty good.”

“Is it? Apparently, I taught myself after hearing yours so many times.”

“Pretty good, my arse! Don’t teach yourself that! You two should apologize for all the fans of that anime right now!”

Nao shouted that in one breath and threw herself onto the sofa.

“I’m always the teased one…I know I know. That’s how it is…”

Oh, she went sulky, the two jokers thought. And they know very well it is best to leave her alone.

“Shiburin, I think we should invite someone here. Someone who knows what “normal” is and who can give us some advice.”

“Okay. But I don’t know who such person would be. You have any ideas, Mio?”

“Well, there is just one person. The one from HoArJu…”

“What on earth is HoArJu?”

The two continued, while taking a glance at Nao. The strategy seemed to work well, and Nao sat there with uncomfortable twitch.

“You know, the Hot Art Jumpin’. Don’t you say HoArJu?”

“I think it’s HAJ usually.

“And you read it as HoArJu”.

“Oh, right…”

“Okay, fine!”

Just as Nao sprung herself back, someone else entered the room.

“Good morning.”

The trio looked at the door.

“……Did you call her, Mio?”

“No, I thought it was you, Shiburin”.

“Nope…”

“Hmm…well she seems like the person for the job, but really, she isn’t.”

Rin and Mio spoke silently. Nao could hear them and jumped in. “Hey that’s kinda rude.” At the entrance, she stood there, too far away to notice the rude remark.

“What were you talking about?”

The guest approached the sofa. Mio answered.

“Well...about life, I guess?”

“Wow that’s quite a topic.”

The guest was the reliable leader of the Cinderella Project, the Venus, Nitta Minami.

“—Relationship between Nao and I isn’t really give/receive type of thing, really.”

I don’t mean you guys are, Karen explained. Uzuki and Aiko knew that well.

“I’m more like the one who pets Nao”.

Grinned Karen, without the lewdness despite the topic.

“Nao-chan’s reactions are always cute, so she can’t stop teasing her, according to Rin-chan.”

“Mio-chan said the same…”

“Yep, that’s about right.”

Karen realized they brought their partners up without realizing, but decided not to tease them.

“I dunno if it’s because of that, but I can sort of understand how Rin feels.”

“How Rin-chan feels?”

Uzuki couldn’t quite follow the sudden turn Karen took. Karen tried to explain to Uzuki.

“You know, you said you are only receiving from Rin, right Uzuki?”

“Yes”

“I think it’s not you are only receiving, but more like Rin wants to give a lot.”

Huh? Uzuki had question marks flying above her head. Aiko seemed to grasp where Karen was going.

“So, you can understand why Rin-chan wants to give a lot, then?”

“Yep”

Karen responded to Aiko’s question.

“It’s not exactly easy to explain with logical order, so bear with me, right?”

Karen winked with apologetic manner. The two nodded and waited for her to continue.

“As you know, Nao is a shy tsundere who is asking to be teased, right?”

It won’t proceed if they objected, so the pair nodded.

“And I enjoy teasing her and see her reactions.”

“Don’t overdo it, alright?”

Aiko grinned wryly. Karen smiled back and continued.

“I think Rin is the same. She wants to give a lot of “I love you”s and enjoying to see Uzuki’s reactions…I think.”

As she reached the end, Karen left some leeway, as if she became unsure. Though Uzuki didn’t really listen.

“I love yous…”

She wrapped her blushed cheek with her hands, and rolled her eyes, overwhelmed. Karen and Aiko looked at each other.

“Hmmm…maybe not “enjoying” but more like by giving a lot to Uzuki, she sees her reaction and…”

“and wants to be assured, isn’t it?”

Karen paused to look for the right word, and Aiko took over.

“Be assured?”

“Yes. By giving a lot of feeling to Uzuki-chan and seeing her reaction, Rin-chan wants to be assured that she can stay with Uzuki-chan, I think.”

“Hmm…you might be right”.

Karen seemed persuaded by Aiko’s choice of word.

“So then, Uzuki. Just receive all of Rin’s love. And then when the moment comes, give her back how you feel. I bet Rin will love it.”

“Y…yes…”

Uzuki was still blushed, so red she might start smoking from the top.

“By the way, Karen-chan”

“Huh? What is it, Aiko-chan?”

“Is that why you tease Nao-chan so much…?”

“……I’ll leave that up to your imagination.”

The two grinned, sandwiching Uzuki. It’s a secret kept between them.

When Uzuki’s blush finally settled, another figure passed by.

“Привет! Hello Uzuki, Aiko and Karen.”

Anya passed by the resting corner, in her normal clothes. They greeted each other.

“Hi Anya. Do you have a lesson now?”

“Да. But I still have some time. What were you talking about?”

“Well—"

* * *

 

“—Huh, so you were talking about how cute your partners are?”

Minami said, sitting next to Rin, in front of Nao and Mio, with beautiful posture.

Mio asked Minami if she had any stories, after explaining the details.

“Hmmm I don’t know…what exactly do you mean by “too cute it’s too much”?”

“Huh? Hmmmm….”

It could be anything if it was stories with the partners being too damn cute. The trio responded to Minami’s question.

“Like when you feel your beat faster?”

Mio said.

“Like you roll on the bed afterwards ‘cos she’s just that cute?”

Nao answered.

“Like she’s so cute you cannot strain yourself?”

Rin took over.

“Wait, stop Shiburin”

“Rin, that’s beyond “difficult” and becoming horny. That’s different.”

Mio and Rin jumped in.

“Well, last one aside…”

Minami smiled and started thinking.

“……It was during the winter holidays”

And started her story.

“Anya wanted me to help with the school assignments, so I went to the 346’s dorm.”

“Oh yeah, Anya lives there.”

Minami nodded to Rin’s comment.

“Then I went to her room…and…you know, she was only wearing T-shirt.”

“……Huh?”

Wasn’t this during the winter break? Mio asked with surprise on her face.

“Well, you know. Anya-chan is from Hokkaido.”

“Ah, I heard people in Hokkaido wear T-shirts and shorts indoors, ‘cos they turn up the heating is so high during the winter.”

“Oh, I didn’t know.”

“Same here.”

Nao explained. Other two were surprised.

Minami continued in more detail. Apparently, the heating in old days is where the tradition comes from. Between Meiji and early Showa era, the main heating source in Hokkaido was coal stoves. They offer heat, but adjustment was not easy. It couldn’t run at low heat without the risk of CO poisoning. On top of it, the houses were made of wood, so the room next to the stoves could still be freezing cold. That’s why people turn it to strong heat to this day.

“But is it okay to turn the heating that high in the dorm?”

“Well, 346 does have money alright……”

That was an outrageous explanation, but it fits the realities. The office complex has luxurious bath and many more, so a small increase in heating by one girl wouldn’t make much of a difference.

“So Anya-chan had her hairs tied and she was wearing just a T-shirt so all hear legs and arms were exposed…”

“Ah…”

They started to see where this was going. The trio started grinning.

“Then we sat at the table, next to each other, and we started the study session. But then her skin touched mine……I wore a little too much that day, so I started to feel hot and……Anya-chan’s T-shirt was kind of loose and…well…so…”

Minami covered her face with her hands and hunched over, apparently remembering that moment as she spoke. Her ears were bright red.

“Then…I couldn’t tell if the heating is too much, or I was the one becoming heated up……then……you know, it was a personal room, the bed was right there and……so……uh……”

Minami couldn’t continue anymore.

Rin and Mio had an evil grin and commented.

“So your _survival instinct went all valkyria_ , I see.”

“Minamin’s _Venus Syndrome went Shine on me into Anyan’s You’re Stars_ , huh~”

“The _Memories_ of winter night……”

“Hey, you three”

The trio never missed the opportunity to be creative with the titles.

“But, you know, you have that moment, right? When you can’t restrain yourself……”

Minami asked the question, her face blushed in crimson red. It wasn’t usual for Minami to drop that kind of question, but the three answered.

“Like when she gave me the final push before the fun time?

That time was like that…Mio responded.

“I don’t have it…It’s always Karen who starts it”

When Karen asks Nao to come over, with her arms wide open, and her “let’s do it” in whispering voice is a true killer, Nao answered.

“Can’t restrain myself? Too many times. I can’t remember.”

“Yeah, I knew it Shiburin.”

Mio immediately responded. Rin has not changed a slight bit from her normal.

“Yeah, everyone has that moment. Yes…”

“W, well, if it was with consent, I guess it’s alright, isn’t it?

Nao tried to save the mess. Effect is questionable, though. Minami, still covering her face, thanked Nao.

“……Hey Minami”

“……What is it, Rin-chan?”

“Even if it was with consent, Minami and Anya is, you know, one of you are underage——"

“I know, I know that very well……”

Rin’s final push made Minami put her head in her hands and curled.

“Hey Shiburin, don’t make things worse!”

“Yeah Rin! Besides, you and Uzuki is 2 years apart, so you have “that kind of period” for a year, you know!?”

“……Well, it adds to the “excitement”, right?”

——SHIBUYAA! Mio’s and Nao’s shout formed a perfect unison.

 

* * *

 

“Minami’s cool episode, is it?”

“Yeah. Do you have anything?”

Karen asked, as they sat in line.

Anya closed her beautiful blue eyes and thought for a moment.

“Hmm…”

“Is it difficult?”

“Нет, eh, there’s too many I cannot choose.”

Ah, that direction……smiled the trio.

“But Minami-san is more like sexy than cool”

Aiko’s remark was a dangerous one, and Uzuki and Karen knew that.

“……Huh? Well----”

Have I done something wrong? Aiko realized and tried to explain, after seeing the expression on Uzuki and Karen’s face. But it was too late.

“——Minami is cute!!”

The resting space was filled with Anya’s shout.

“Well, Anya-chan?”

Uzuki, who sat next to Anya tried to calm her down, but she didn’t stop.

“Minami is cute! Yes Minami is sexy, but her appeal isn’t just that!”

Anya went on. Why was she the only one who had swimsuit as her CD’s cover? Why is her costumes always have too much exposure? It doesn’t change anything even if the swimsuit changed from bikini to racing swimsuit. Cute costumes will fit Minami so much better etcetc. Anya clenched her hand and gave the speech.

“W, well, Anya-chan! The new song she did the center position for. That costume was definitely the cool one, right?”

Uzuki tried to redirect the topic.

“Ah, Seizon Honno Valkyria. You were also super cool, Aiko.”

“Th, thank you. That costume is named “the Valkyria Oath”

“……Зачем”

“Huh?”

“Why……Why is the uniform all torn up!?”

Anya exclaimed, with her blue eyes wide open. That’s also an issue…thought the trio. They almost gave up.

“Even without the tear, this uniform is very close to the edge! You can see her belly!”

That’s the whole point……Karen thought, but kept it to herself.

“It’s trouser style, but it’s too sexy! It’s even more sexy than skirt style Aiko was wearing! Trouser style should be the cool, one……”

“Anya-chan…?”

“Anya-chan?”

“What’s wrong?”

Aiko, Karen and Uzuki tried to ask her what was going on, but Anya didn’t stop.

“Minami is cool……Minami is cute……Trouser style should be cool, skirt style is cute……Minami is cute……Trouser style but sexy……Minami is sexy……Minami is…Minami……”

Anya shook her head, trembling with the contradiction. Now she only mumbles “Minami…Minami…” with her trembling lips.

“Oh no, she’s trapped in circular thought!”

She’ll have fever if we don’t do something, Karen said.

“What do we do!?”

“It’s best to let her meet Minami-san! Uzuki, you call Minami-san and find out where she is. Aiko, help me hold her shoulder.”

The two started their own assistance.

“NnnnnghMinamiiii”

Karen and Aiko tried to calm confused girl down.

“Wha, what is going on here?”

“Huh, ah Kyoko-chan”

Kyoko from Pink Check School passed by the mess.

“Good timing, help us!”

“What?”

 

* * *

 

“----So is this why you called me? Just for this?”

The member of Hot Art Jumpin’, or according to Mio, HoArJu, Yoshioka Saki said with a sigh. Saki was who Mio thought would “know about normal relationship, and could give us some advice”. They called Saki when Minami was still knocked out from Rin’s last straw. They sat down, around the table.

“What do you mean “just for this”, Sakky?”

“Sakky…”

“Don’t you have something like that Sakkyun? Too-cute-it’s-too-much moments”

“Make up your mind with the nickname, Mio-chan”

When she’s cool, it’s Sakky, and when she’s cute, it’s Sakkyun, according to Mio.

“Well, it’s like always, to be honest.”

“When Sakky says is, it sounds normal and platonic”

“Hey Mio”

What she was saying was no different from Rin’s comment earlier, but the difference was quite big. So this is the normal relationship, Nao and Minami finally understood, who sat aside.

“Kyoko-chan is, well, the costumes and her fashion are all very cute…so it’s not like it’s sexy and can’t look at her or anything. But when I’m close to her, I become all worked up……”

But Kyoko’s cuteness feels natural, and that was her appeal.

“I’m using old garage in my house as my studio, you know. Recently Kyoko-chan comes to my studio often.

“Oh, cute little commuting wife, is it?”

“……I won’t deny that.”

Mio grinned as she nodded. Saki continued after clearing her throat.

“So, I always focus too much on the work, and forget about everything else and eat unhealthy food. Kyoko-chan found out about it, and she started bringing me lunch ever since. Everyday.”

 “Oh, she is definitely the communing wife alright”.

“Kyoko’s good at cooking and other house work, I heard from Uzuki.”

Rin continued.

“It’s so delicious……One day, I was a little high from finishing the piece I was working on, and told her “I’d eat your food everyday”……”

Saki started to blush, and everyone looked at her as she did so.

“Then, what happened?”

Nao urged her to continue, somehow blushed herself, leaning forward with eagerness.

“Th, then Kyoko-chan said “If my cooking is good enough”……I quickly said “No, it’s not like being “good enough”, I want to eat your food and yours only”……”

“Oh yes! The burning youth! Your _tiny tiny heart_ throbbed, yeah?”

“That was kinda forced, Mio…”

Mio shouted, as she braced her shoulders and twitched.

“Wait, isn’t it like proposing?”

“It’s exactly what it is, Rin.”

They are having platonic couple relationship…Rin and Nao said.

“And then…? What happened after that?”

“Mi, Minami-san, you seem to be into this topic…”

Saki almost stepped back, as she saw Minami’s eyes, shining with curiosity. She seemed to recover from the damages earlier.

“But when I said that, I didn’t think too much about it, and neither of us took it that way. So, nothing happened then.”

Nothing different after that too, continued Saki.

“Eh? Then nothing has changed with that?”

“Kyoko-chan and I realized what we said at night……and we were a bit nervous for a bit……but nothing like “advancing” per se.”

Saki gave vague answer to Mio’s question.

“Mmmm, the platonic love right there!”

“Like it’s a romance novel for all ages”

“Is that a compliment?”

Mio-chan and Rin-chan are kinda harsh sometimes, said Saki.

“I kinda feel the same. Like the you say things without realizing what it means.”

Nao started to remember a moment.

“Kyoko-chan and I are both very active when we don’t think about it too much…When Kyoko-chan told me she’ll wash the dirty clothes, she almost took my clothes off of me”

“Wow that’s bold……”

“That’s, something……”

Minami was surprised too.

“But I like all that, everything about her.”

“Falling love is like that, yeah”

Everyone nodded to Saki’s comment.

“It all boils down to the fact that she’s just too damn cute”

Rin and the company started to blame everything on their cute partners, maybe more like trying to justify it for themselves.

“Well…yeah”

Mio agreed.

“But it isn’t “I love her because she’s cute”, but more like “I love everything about her, including her cuteness”……”

“Oh Kamiyan, you gonna start again? Go on.”

“Hey don’t rush me like that okay?”. Nao told Mio with frowned face. Mio asked her to continue, after a casual sorry.

“I mean sure she is cute, but I love everything about her, not just the cute side of her……”

Everyone went silent after Nao’s comment, and nodded.

“……Yeah you’re right. Kyoko-chan is cute, but she has that kind of strength in her character, and I love her about that too.”

“A-chan has that strong, kinda stubborn part as well……I love that too.”

“Uzuki is…she usually tries to do everything on her own, and I want to support her……”

“Karen shows me her weaker side of her, and I just love that so much……”

“Anya-chan isn’t very good at putting her feelings into Japanese, so she tells me with her whole body……but then sometimes she does that in such a cool way……”

Now the series of partner bragging mess has started. All of them just started listing what they love about their partners, almost speaking to themselves.

After all that items are said, they all had a big sigh. All of their faces are covered with grin, so soft they look like they are in heaven – and possibly their brains too.

“……She’s just so, damn, cute”

“it’s too much……”

“yep…I can’t take it……”

“yeah……”

“it’s too much indeed……”

Maybe, falling in love is like that. And nobody said it out loud, but everyone shared this one urge. They wanted to meet their partners so bad, after re-establishing how cute she is. And if they can, cuddle her and all, by themselves.

Just as they started thinking about the schedule afterwards, Minami’s phone rang.

“Hey Minamin, your phone’s ringing”

“Eh?”

Minami’s phone was ringing in her bag. The ringtone was for the call, so she picked it up, still blushed.

“Hello, Nitta speaking”

“Ah, Minami-san. Where are you right now?”

“Huh, Uzuki-chan? Well, I’m at the project room on the 30th floor……”

The call was from Uzuki. Ever so vigilant, the trio listened to the conversation.

“Okay, the project room! Ah, Minami-san, please don’t move from there! I’m taking Anya-chan to the room!”

“Huh? What? Wait wait, so Anya-chan is coming here?”

“Karen-chan, Aiko-chan, Kyoko-chan, we know the location! Well, Minami-san, see you soon!”

“Wa, wait Uzuki-chan!” shouted Minami but the call has ended already. She took her smartphone off of her ear and dangled her arm.

“Minami……?”

Rin asked carefully, with hesitation.

“Anya-chan is coming here……”

“Huh?”

“And I heard Karen-chan, Aiko-chan and Kyoko-chan’s name as well……”

“……What?”

Everyone was confused.

“Okay, let’s make things clear. So, the call was from Shimamu~, right?”

“Yes……”

Minami responded with confirmation.

“And then Uzuki said she’s taking Anya here?”

“Yeah……”

She nodded to Rin’s question.

“And you heard Aiko, Karen and Kyoko’s name as well?”

“Yes…”

She gave positive answer to Nao’s question as well.

Everyone felt it’s gonna be an issue.

“No way, so after all this, everyone’s coming here!?

Sure, they wanted to meet them, but not like this. It was the shared sentiment among the five.

“We, well, I have to bring back my normal face. I can’t meet A-chan with this stupid grin on my face”

“My face still feels hot……I’ll go cool it down”

“Oh no…I’m gonna say weird things to her after all that……I should think about how I respond……”

“Calm down, my heart, just calm down……”

Mio, Nao, Minami and Saki are trying their hardest to act normal in front of “her”

“Well, it’s 30th floor, nobody’s gonna notice, right…”

“Hey hey hey SHIBUYAA!”

This Rin of Shibuya was having the normal attitude.

“Just please do that in the meeting room. It has sound insulation and all!”

“Mio-chan, that’s not the issue here!”

 

* * *

 

“Saki-san’s cool episode?”

In the elevator carrying Anya with Minami-deprivation, Karen asked Kyoko.

“Hmmmm…there are too many to choose from……”

“Same as Anya-chan huh”

Kyoko apologized with a smile. Karen smiled back, telling her not to worry.

“But Saki-san isn’t just cool, you know?”

“Hm?”

Aiko and Uzuki urged her to continue, curious about the details.

“Well, I don’t know if I can put it into words……but I like Saki-san not because she’s cool, but she is cool, because I love her……I guess?”

No, I can’t find a good way to explain, Kyoko said. But everyone else seemed to get the idea.

“I know. Rin-chan is cool, of course, but I love when she shows me the cute childish side……I love that too!”

“Mio-chan can also become very cute……”

“Minami is……cool……and cute……”

“There, there, Anya……Nao is usually cute, but I love the cool attitudes that she shows sometimes. I just love that gap……”

The atmosphere in the elevator softened quite a bit.

“……Now I want to see her, after talking about her”

Aiko, Kyoko and Karen nodded to Uzuki’s quiet comment.

“Let’s meet them once we deliver Anya to Minami, alright?”

Everyone nodded.

 

Moments later, the bell rang and they arrived at the destination.

 

The doors slowly opened.

 

The project room is just few meters away.

 


End file.
